The Latest Lexus Hybrid Is An Electric Carbon Fiber Bicycle

the press release from Lexus
Introducing the Lexus HB (Hybrid Bicycle) Concept

Lexus has established itself as an industry leader in bringing advanced technologies to the premium car market. Now it has applied the same thinking on a smaller scale to create the Lexus Hybrid Bicycle, a design concept the captures the fundamental engineering and design values of the brand, but with two wheels rather than four.



In every aspect this is Lexus, from the L-finesse design language of the engaging and elegant frame, to the application of hybrid power, an electric eight-speed transmission and lightweight carbon fibre construction.





Lexus has brought what is one of the only two examples in existence (one black and one white) to the UK for the first time, following the bicycle's debut at the 2009 Tokyo motor show (at that show, the concept bike was shown in black).



above: the Lexus HB Concept bike appeared in black at the 2009 Tokyo auto show

Its arrival coincides with the announcement of Lexus's title sponsorship of the Great British Bike Ride, a four-day charity fun ride from September 1-4, 2010, that will see hundreds of cyclists following a course from Land's End to the home of English rugby at Twickenham.



Lexus has pioneered high performance, low emissions and optimum fuel efficiency with its full hybrid Lexus Hybrid Drive powertrain technology. The Hybrid Bicycle adopts similar principles, with the pedal power of the rider boosted by assistance to the front wheel from a 240W electric motor, via a 25.9V Lithium-ion battery, with a choice of Eco or Power modes. And, as with Lexus Hybrid Drive, there is an energy regeneration function that helps recharge the battery by capturing kinetic energy generated under braking.



The Lexus Hybrid Bicycle has all-wheel drive, by means of a belt system. It is equipped with an electric eight-speed Shimano internal gear system, which references the sophisticated eight-speed shift-by-wire automatic transmission of Lexus's LS 600h limousine.



The carbon fibre construction shares the same light-but-strong composite materials technology that was used on Valentino Rossi's MotoGP-winning motorcycle.

The video below is from the 2009 Tokyo Auto show (courtesy of Gizmag):


Specs:

• Length (mm) 1,598
• Width (mm) 425
• Seat height (mm) 900
• Wheelbase (mm) 1,080
• Tyre size 20 x 1 3/8
• Weight (kg) 17
• Charge time Approx. 2hrs
• Motor output (W) 240
• Battery type Lithium-ion
• Battery voltage 25.9V/4.0Ah
• Gear system Shimano 8-speed internal gear
• Shift lever Shimano dual control
• Drive train Belt drive

The big bummer? There are no current plans for the Lexus Hybrid Bicycle to become a production model.

the white bike images are courtesy of Lexus and the black bike, courtesy of Gizmag

The Capella: Vietnamese Student Designs Electric Folding Bike

Capella, as Truong Minh Nhat calls his creation, is an electric bike made with light composites that the Ho Chi Minh City University of Architecture student says can be folded and put into a backpack.

Capella can have its wheels, chain and chain-ring bolt folded into the body:


Users can take the bike along when traveling and escape the crowd anywhere, Nhat says, adding that it can travel at 30 kilometers per hour with a battery that will run for 12 kilometers after it is charged for two hours.



Nhat says most of the designed components are not available in the market, like a semicircle top bar.

"I had to convince and explain a lot to bike component makers, although I was making only one and offered them high prices", he says. Starting the project more than half a year ago as his graduation thesis, Nhat put a lot of time and effort into it. He spent one month sketching out the design, which was inspired by the Unicorn that controls the star Capella in Greek mythology.

"My product targets teenagers who want to ride bicycles, so I paid due attention to its stylish design", Nhat says.

To ensure that all the parts followed the design, Nhat had to stay with the people making them all the time and because they were more than 30 kilometers apart, he had to shuttle back and forth many times everyday.

Two days before the deadline, Nhat was overwhelmed with separate components, electricity systems and batteries. Although he submitted his product just two hours before the deadline, he obtained high marks for it.

He invited some workers to his house to assemble the bike. "All of them then slept for only two hours each night until the bike was complete", Nhat says.

"My application for intellectual property right has been approved, says the graduate of the university's Industrial Design Department. I am now studying ways to improve the bike's eminent functions before seeking partners to launch the product in the market at a price reasonable for Vietnamese people."

Since the first bike was made manually by assembling separate components, it still has certain shortcomings, he says.



Nhat expects to replace some of the bike's components with even lighter materials to reduce its weight to around 10 kilograms.

source: QUỐC LINH for Tuổi trẻ

Remember the student designed Uno by Ben Gulak?

Read about that one here.